Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1887-04-06
A FooLHARov FEAT.
A Thrilling Episode Enscted in . Rocky
Mouutaiu Gulcl.

tKansas City Journal.f
The point for the race was one Of th6
steepest gulches on tho most precipitous
mountain within radius Of twenty miles,
and il Is not an cxaggeration to say tho ins
cline OF the course was equal to IS deg.
The length was 2,6)o feet-A measurement,
for the starting point was Just at the up
per end Of two full mining claims and the
terminus on the "hogback'' before ro-
ferred to, the center of which was 400 fest
from the lower end lines Of the claims Ia
question. Under the agreement, Petersen.
Swede, was TO entor tho gulch nearly
1000 feet above the line whero tho timber
ceases TO grow, and after taking his post
tion directly in the path of the slide, or
avalanche, as it can more properly bo
called, was required to start the snow.
This was easy enough, as n stick Of giant
powder was all he needed. 1t looked like
tallow candle wrapped in brown pa.
per, and the idea was TO explode il, tho
tremendous vibration OF the air starting
the slide It's common thing to start
slides in that way, and It Is often rcsorted
to by men who have steep mountain sides
TO climb or gulches TO cross.
Well, TO get along with the stor >,
Petersen got out in the gulca all right.
banked his shoes and then placed his feet
IN tho straps His next move was to draw
the giant-powdsr from his bootleg and ad =
just the cap and fuse. He did il as lcisurc:-
ly as il preparing 10 fire an ordinary blast
and to the fifty or sixty men who stood
below and watched him, all of W HON knew
he was taking tremendous risk in even
ven turing INTO the gulch so soon after abe
storm, II seemed as il he wero tryin z 10.
harrow their feelings.
Presently hIs right arm few backward,
: n III a haaf fhn had
gun In moment thc dctonatlon reached
us, and At the same instant we saw tho
sudden movement OF the immense body OF
snow at the head Of the gulch Petersen
seemed to be IN II, but il was only a de-
luslon for he came flying down the gulch
with the velocity Of n railroad tram. Tho
avalanche was behind him, and rushing
along with mighty power and speed We
all realized that IL the m IN lost a shoe. or
changed his course hairs BREADTH
his doom was scaled We
stood IN brcathless horror aS the roaring
sound OF the mighty avalanche reached
our ears and as we saw tho immense
white cloud rolling down with the floeing
man just before It. BY the time half tho
course had been run the man was still in
the lead Both racer and raced had
been gathering speed every moment aud
the pace was simply tremendous. We all
understood that il he could preserve his
equilibrium for few seconds only his
safety would be- insured, and as we stood
with our eyes rivctcd upon him it seemed
as If he would get through all right.
But shifting Of the body--a partial
swaying-and we saw no was riding on
one shoe only. We were horrificd, and
our faces blanched in spite OF ourselves,
Tor we believed his death was certain. In,
moment however we felt relieved for no
recovered himself magnificcntly, and we
saw both shoes were doing good service
again But he had lost timc, and the big
white cloud was upon him II was coming
with the sound Of heavy thunder, and wo
the dark form OF the man stood out In,
bold relief before il, but seemingly hurled
along III the very front OF the resistless
body. A terrible rush OF wind, binding
clouds of snow, sounds like enormous
waves beating upon the shore-and all
was over For a moment we stood ave.
stricken, for We were yet uncertain
whether our friend lay buried under the
now peaceful white pillows piled up upon
one side Of the ridge or had found safety
in the soft snow upon the other. There
! he is" shouted one of the party, and in an
! instant fifty or sixty voices were raised in
great cheer that echoed and re-echoedi
along the mountain sides.
And there he was, or rather his legs.
and both Of them were moving back and
forth in very lively fashion. He had
taken header into the snow and sank
| down almost TO his k3ecs. We got him
out in few minutes, aud then he ex-
! planned how it all happened. He said he
was rushed up one side OF the ridge SO
rapidly that his long shoes did not follow
the incline on the other, but shot straight
forward They left his feet, and he began
turning somersaults through the air, pres
emily coming down headforemost, as bc-
fore described. The leap from the top OF
the ridge was over fifty feet, but the snow
was as soft as feather bed, and he was
not harmed in the least Tho wager was
nothing but drinks for the crowd, and the
saloon keeper OF the town had TO set them